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I truly respect Jason Taylor as one of the best and most respected players in the league but it seems a bit awkward as to his statement about Shawn Merriman and the steroids issue.

Is he somewhat whining about the issue and trying to persuade the public into voting for him over Shawn as Defensive Player Of The Year? or is he just making a statement at the exact time where it truly is between him and Shawn for the award?

Seems like a bad time to make the statement when it should have been made at the time Shawn was suspended,Why wait till now especially since the voting is down to two as when Shawn was caught with the steroids situation there was a bit more D guys in line for the prestigious honor and maybe the statement was not needed to be said then now thats its really down to 2 guys .

I personally think that Shawn is better than Jason (Steroids or no steroids) and is a part responsible of his outstanding play to the success of the Chargers this year and will make OLs double team him in the playoffs to avoid the typical sack or two per game Merrimen gets.

I say Shawn gets it by a sliver over Taylor this year,although I am sure Merrimen has bigger things in his mind than winning this award.

Jason Taylor should not comment on the award. If he wants to comment on what happened...then fine ... especially good for our youth to see. But, for the award ... it is not his to give and he should not sway it's process.

Jason Taylor should not comment on the award. If he wants to comment on what happened...then fine ... especially good for our youth to see. But, for the award ... it is not his to give and he should not sway it's process.

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Thats true,but its a bad time to bring up his opinion on Merrimen and I think its more timed this way because of the Defensive POY honor...Remember Taylor is going nowhere but home after next week,so this award will be his only award this year if he gets it,IMO its more of a 'Good Guy vs. Bad Guy statement'

He put himself in an awkward position because his statements were self-serving, but he is completely correct that Merriman shouldn't even be considered for the award.

Before anyone says "but even missing 4 games Merriman is the best in the league", tell me this: can you say with certainty that without the steroids he'd still be the best?

No, you can't. Steroids don't wear off overnight. There is a reasonable possibility that the steroids he took before he got caught are effectively aiding him still today. He shouldn't be eligible for the award. It's not a double penalty, it's a more accurate single penalty.

I truly respect Jason Taylor as one of the best and most respected players in the league but it seems a bit awkward as to his statement about Shawn Merriman and the steroids issue.

Is he somewhat whining about the issue and trying to persuade the public into voting for him over Shawn as Defensive Player Of The Year? or is he just making a statement at the exact time where it truly is between him and Shawn for the award?

Seems like a bad time to make the statement when it should have been made at the time Shawn was suspended,Why wait till now especially since the voting is down to two as when Shawn was caught with the steroids situation there was a bit more D guys in line for the prestigious honor and maybe the statement was not needed to be said then now thats its really down to 2 guys .

I personally think that Shawn is better than Jason (Steroids or no steroids) and is a part responsible of his outstanding play to the success of the Chargers this year and will make OLs double team him in the playoffs to avoid the typical sack or two per game Merrimen gets.

I say Shawn gets it by a sliver over Taylor this year,although I am sure Merrimen has bigger things in his mind than winning this award.

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Jason is 1,000,000% correct. Merriman is a black eye for the NFL. The NFL media machine was hyping the guy like the next Lawrence Taylor and he has turned out to be a non repenting CHEATER. The NFL does not take steroid cheating serious. 4 game suspension is a chicken **** punishment. A dude got caught cheating in chess the other day and got banned for 10 years. Look what happened to us in this years Tour De France. They took the yellow shirt back, the trophy and our cyclist got banned.

Also, when does NFL Defensive Player of the Year just become a competition for most sacks. Look at Merrimans number of tackles. His numbers are lame. He also does not cover the pass well. Also, I think Jason has won 2-3 games for the Dolphins this year. Merriman has won 0 games for the Chargers. Look at the game winning Heap catch for the RAVENS against the Chargers. Does Merriman wrap up and tackle heap to prevent the game winning TD? No he didn't!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you think Merriman should win the DPOY award then you probably think Jessica Simpson should win a Grammy for best singer.

Taylor answered a question honestly, now people who like to stir up crap for their news organizations are trying to make it a DPOY issue - the question as I understand it was related to the Pro-Bowl, his comments referred to Merriman's getting named to the Pro-Bowl after a league suspension. Taylor is one of the elder Statesmen for the League, if he hasn't earned the right to speak about player award standards then no player has. Vrabel got to carp about Luis Castillo admitting to steriod use to heal a damaged elbow before the 2005 draft, there is precedent.

I think he is a little of both.. Merriman does not deserve the award, and it should go to Taylor, because watching the Pats play the fish.. Jason Taylor is our daddy.. He changed the game... Merriman took a advantage by taking steroids.. At the same time Taylor should just be a little more professional about it, but I could understand his frustration..

In my eyes he is 100% correct, Merriman cheated and last time I checked the NFL does not want to send the message that cheaters can win. It's sad to say that the MLB, a league that lets teams spend as much or as little as they want, is actually handling this kind of situation better than the NFL since McGuire isn't getting into the hall of fame. I don't think Taylor is a whiner because no one else is even raising the point, and its a serious issue that needs to be dealt with. The fact that Merriman is going to the pro-bowl is a disgrace, and if you ask me the penalty for breaking the rules on steroids are far too lenient.

As other posters said; he made the statement in response to a question. If he was actively out campaigning for the player of the year I would still agree with the argument but he would look a lot more foolish and egocentric about it.

note he also talked about eligibility for the pro-bowl; where he is NOT in competition with Merriman for a slot. So I don't think his logic or ethics on the issue can really be questioned.

The question is will the NFL step up to the plate and issue a ruling on the matter.

The NFL should send a very, very strong message on steroids. Merriman should not win def. MVP honors. He should be satisfied with the pro bowl.
Being a very good player, he has absolutely no reason to be on steroids.

The NFL has a truly pathetic record of dealing with off-field issues - drugs, player arrests etc - and anyone with influence and the interests of the game at heart has a responsibility to speak out in my opinion. And that hopefully will shame the league into realising that they cannot sit by and allow itself to be dragged into the cesspool by an increasingly large minority of players who are not prepared to abide by either the laws of the NFL or the society in which they live.

It is painfully obvious that the mainstream media which covers football is not prepared to take these issues on in any meaningful way, and the responsibility therefore falls to others to do so.

I take my hat off to Jason Taylor for expressing his opinions in a fearless and umambiguous manner. Let us hope others do the same.

(For the record, if I was the Commissioner of the NFL, Merriman would not be able to play in the Pro Bowl this season because he would have been baned for the entirety of the season. A four game ban is no sort of deterrent)

Glad Taylor spoke up, maybe a couple of hundred others should also say the same thing.. Merrimen cheated pure and simple, and should be treated such. By naming him Defensive POY, sends a mixed message to the NFL and all of the kids aspiring to be Pro Football Players.

The NFL should send a very, very strong message on steroids. Merriman should not win def. MVP honors. He should be satisfied with the pro bowl.
Being a very good player, he has absolutely no reason to be on steroids.

I don't see how anyone can vote Merriman over Taylor. It is known that most of Merriman's stats were put up while on steroids. I'm sorry, but that disqualifies a guy in my book. How good was he and how good were the steroids?

Could taylor be on HGH for all I know? Of course he could. He didn't get caught though. Is Merriman better when off of steroids than Taylor? Maybe, maybe not. The reason we don't know is because Merriman has been caught roiding. I don't feel bad if the reason Merriman loses is because a true comparison can't be made. He's the one who made that comparison impossible.

I believe he was posed the question by a reporter. I respect Taylor for stepping up and speaking his truth. He has earned the opportunity to be heard on this issue, and he happens to be right.

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I did not have a problem with what was said only with who said it.

There is a time and place for everything but letting the media decide when and where is not always in the best interest of anyone being quoted particularly when a quote will likely be quoted without the full context in which it was spoken.

Thus, Taylor is both a whiner and is correct but this is an issue that should have been addressed as part of the steroid policy and by the league itself before the fact not after the fact.